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by Poke-lover88 (TheTinyFoxtail)



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Black & White | Pokemon Black and White Versions
Genre: Contests, F/M, FerrisWheelShipping, Friendship, Ideals, Romance, Sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-23
Updated: 2015-02-19
Packaged: 2018-02-18 13:18:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2349791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTinyFoxtail/pseuds/Poke-lover88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He trusted her to show him her world, and how to be a part of it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello. Just a little Ferriswheelshipping two-shot I wrote forever ago.  
> I hope you enjoy! :D

_~Hold on, to me as we go. As we roll down, this unfamiliar road~_

"Look N, A Pikachu!" White squealed, dashing off into the forest after the small yellow rodent without a backwards glance.

N skidded out of his standing position and flew after her. Even though he'd been all alone on his journey throughout Unova, he felt scared when the girl wasn't with him. He didn't know if it was because it was a new region, because he was afraid he would get lost, or even because he just didn't want to be away from her. All he knew was that now, the instant he was left on his own, he felt uneasy.

His long legs easily matched her strides and before he knew it he had caught up to her, without even breaking a sweat.

The small brunette was now on the forest floor, rolling around with the yellow creature who seemed overjoyed that it had found a playmate. It squeaked out its name and N could almost see White's heart melt. He knew what the Pokémon had said of course. In all reality it was commenting that her hair smelled weird but White had taken it as an open invitation to catch the electric type.

"Go, Pokeball!" she called, chucking the red and white ball at the small and now bewildered mouse Pokémon.

N cringed as the Pikachu's eyes widened with surprise. He still didn't like it when Pokémon were captured and packed into those tiny contraptions. Yes, White had won their battle. Yes, he knew he should feel better about it since their battle had decided whose ideals were right. But somehow he still didn't.

Pokeballs, training, battles. All of them still seemed cruel to N. He knew that his battle with White had been the ultimate answer; proving that keeping and training Pokémon _was_ in fact still the right thing to do, but N still had his lingering doubts.

White pranced over to his side, a smile the size of Kanto scrawled across her face.

"Wasn't he cute?" she asked, turning the ball holding the rodent over in her hands.

"Uh," N grunted, forcing a smile onto his face. "Yeah, I guess so."

White frowned, her eyes narrowing. "You still don't like it when I catch Pokémon do you?"

N contemplated for a moment on whether or not to tell the truth. He knew all White wanted was to show him that the way she and everyone else treated Pokémon was fine. And he could tell she was getting more and more frustrated by the day when time after time he still protested against it.

"No," he said quietly, looking at the ground.

White let out a loud sigh. "Oh come on, N! That's what this whole trip was supposed to be about. We said we'd go to Hoenn and then you'd be able to see other people with Pokémon and realize that we all aren't just fire-breathing, Pokémon-abusing, monsters."

N couldn't help but crack a grin. She really was on her last straw. She was cute when she was angry.

"I know you aren't a monster White, it's just…" N trailed off, looking to the Pokeball that still resided in her hand. "I just don't think he wanted to be captured, that's all."

White glanced down to the Pokeball in her hand as well, squinting at its shiny surface.

"Here," she said, throwing the ball into the air. It exploded in a bright flash of light and on the ground slowly appeared the same Pikachu.

It shook its fur out, blinking a few times as it surveyed its surroundings before glancing up at White. It was obvious the moment it realized that she was its trainer. A wide smile broke out across its face as it dashed up her leg and perched itself on her shoulder, rubbing on the side of her head with its cheek in glee.

N's eyes widened as he watched the blatant show of affection. It was a far cry from the expression on its face when it had been caught.

The Pikachu settled down after a few moments and glanced at N in interest, its beady black eyes holding nothing but pure curiosity. It didn't hold an ounce of sadness in its stare, the emotion N had expected.

"See, look N. He's happy," White said, reaching up and ruffling the Pikachu's fur lightly.

N nodded halfheartedly.

"Pokémon _want_ to be with trainers N! I figured you would know that by now. Sure they might be a little frightened when a stranger just walks up to them and chucks a ball at their face, but they grow to love their caretaker. It's the balance of nature." White reached forward and placed her right hand against his cheek.

His eyes were trained on hers in an instant as a slight warmth coursed through his face. Throughout the week they had been in Hoenn she hadn't shown any signs of affection. She had been more than a little giddy in Unova, always running up to hug him and playing around as if they were a couple, but the minute they went on the trip to Hoenn she had changed. N could tell that she truly meant business. It was her new top priority to get him to see things her way. And so the small affectionate gesture took him by surprise.

"N, I know you've been taught differently, but you have to believe me. The bond between a trainer and Pokémon is beautiful and important. They don't battle because we force them to, they battle because they _want_ to. They want to make their trainer proud."

N frowned almost immediately, any hint of the blush he had had now gone.

White sighed and took her hand away from his face, glancing up at the sky. "Well, it's getting late. I had hoped to make it to the next city today… but I guess that's not gonna happen."

N nodded, not exactly hearing what she had to say. His mind was still on what she had said before. Pokémon wanted to battle to make their trainer's proud? He could imagine it. White's Samurott was always a bit battle-happy, always wanting to challenge any trainer that came along. N's Zoroark was similar. Although it wasn't exactly pining after battles, the minute it was in one N could sense its mood change; it was extremely happy when it battled.

A small jab of pain raced through N's heart. He remembered the other side of the spectrum. Pokémon hurt by battles, struggling for breath. Sure they wanted to battle, but that didn't meant it was good for them.

He sighed, taking off his hat and combing his fingers through the mass of hair. He knew White was right, to a point anyway. He couldn't deny the happy looks that Pokémon had when with their trainers, but that didn't mean that they had to be confined in such tiny spaces, or made to fight one another.

"Hey, Mr. Spaceout. How about some help?" White asked as she struggled with a pole to their tent, a bit of humor in her voice.

N hadn't even noticed her move but quickly shuffled over to her side, whipping the tent together in less than a minute.

White dropped to her knees the instant the tent was finished, the Pikachu still perched on her shoulder squeaking out in surprise as it held on for dear life. The brunette scooted into the tent just as fast. N didn't see any remainder of her until a hand poked out of the tent, motioning for him to come inside. The hand then disappeared just as quickly.

N chuckled as he ducked into the tent. White did always like her sleep. And she didn't take kindly to anyone taking any of it away from her. Whether it meant waking her up early, going to bed late, or nudging her in the middle of the night; the result was always the same: A slap to the face.

N crawled in carefully, zipping it up behind him before plopping down next to White who was already half asleep in her sleeping bag. The Pikachu was happily curled up on her bag, small and high-pitched snores squeaking out every few seconds.

N paused for a moment, watching her face. It was so peaceful, not a care in the world seen in her expression. In that moment everything they had been talking about escaped N, his mind now solely on his traveling partner. And he decided to ask a question that had been bothering him since they had left Unova.

"White," he whispered, gently shaking her shoulder.

Her arm, as if guided by an otherworldly force, flew out and hurtled toward N's head. He ducked swiftly, expecting the movement ahead of time and White's arm kept moving until it was back where it had started, at her side, almost looking like a helicopter blade as it sliced through the air.

She grunted and opened one eye. "What?"

N grinned and stifled a few chuckles as he asked his question. "Why have you been acting so different since we left?" The question flew like a bullet and his confidence was gone just as quickly as her other eye opened and her head shot up.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"U-uh," he stuttered. "You know. You've been kinda serious lately, and we haven't gotten to, uh, do any of the stuff we normally do."

White cocked an eyebrow, "What do we normally do?"

"I don't know," N muttered, his entire face heating up. He had no idea how to word it. "Here!" he said, snapping his fingers and pointing at the space between their sleeping bags. "This. This used to never be there."

White looked down at the bottom of the tent and then back up to N. "The tent?"

He pursed his lips. He could tell she was making this difficult for him as a smile cracked across her face. "You know what I mean. We used to sleep so close you couldn't fit a piece of paper in between. And now… this," he said, gesturing to the one foot gap.

"If you wanted to sleep in the same sleeping bag all you had to do was ask," White said in a deeply sarcastic tone as she began to crawl out of her bag.

N hadn't exactly meant for it to end like that but he had to admit he wasn't going to protest. He wanted an answer as to why she had been so distant lately, but as she shimmied her way into the bag he didn't make a peep of a complaint.

"Better?" she asked, her eyes already drooping. She was smashed against him and he could already feel the body temperature heating up the tent just due to the close proximity.

"Yeah, I guess…" he trailed off, scooting down next to her and tentatively wrapping his arms around the girl. "But it still doesn't answer my question."

"And what was that question again?" White muttered against his chest.

"Why have you been so serious lately?" N stated. He wanted to make it as clear as possible.

There was a long pause and N for a moment feared she wouldn't answer. But after a few minutes ticked by he felt her head move as she looked up to his face.

"I just want to convince you, that's all."

Again, any playfulness he had somehow coaxed out of her instantly vanished.

"I just think you'd be so much happier if you believed the way I do. If you just let go of the past and focused on what's happening now, and what our battle proved."

N blinked, looking down at White as she gazed up at him with sad eyes. He wanted to believe the way she did as well. But he knew he just couldn't still condone all of the fighting. Sure during the week they had spent so far in Hoenn he had grown a lot. He had witnessed countless Pokémon and countless people and Pokémon having fun with one another and getting along flawlessly. He had even pretty much gotten past the fact of Pokémon capture, minus the tiny balls that is. But he just couldn't see a reason why Pokémon should fight. And that's all it seemed trainers did these days.

"Hey, I know!" A sudden burst of loudness from White made N jump and refocus his thoughts.

"What?"

She grinned, "I have someplace to take you. I think you'll like it."

N felt a wave of hesitance wash over him as she grinned to herself. If it involved battling again he would just up and leave. She had dragged him to countless places that she thought would be good for him. Gyms, training schools, Pokémon Centers… the list went on and on and in each place battling was always a key aspect.

N knew White saw the hesitant look on his face as she spoke up.

"Trust me, N. I think you'll really like this one."

He glanced back down at her again. Her brown eyes were sparkling with anticipation and excitement and once again those orbs melted his heart.

He nodded in agreement. He'd go along with anything she said, as long as she was the one saying it.

"Thank you!" she squealed, springing upward and crushing her lips to his. The small and jubilant kiss only lasted for a second and yet N felt lightheaded. His lips were on fire, even after she pulled away and settled back down to go to sleep, her arms now wrapping around him as well.

He glanced down at her with a dazed expression and smiled.

"That's what I missed most," he said, a stray chuckle that sounded more like a giggle passing through his still parted lips.

He saw a smile stretch across her face and even though her eyes were closed he knew she was very happy.

He settled down next to her, his brain still on a high. Whatever she had planned the next day he would go along with without protest. He trusted her. And it was because he trusted her, and loved her, that he would open his mind to possibilities in the world around him he would have never considered before. He trusted her to fix him.

_~And although this wave, is stringing us along. Just know you're not alone.~_


	2. Part 2

_~The trouble, it might drag you down. If you get lost, you can always be found.~_

"White," N drawled, his voice filled with hesitance as he tried to get her attention.

"Oh hush, it's a surprise, you know," she replied, not even glancing back toward the boy whom she was currently dragging down a crowded hall.

The morning after sleeping in the forest was a busy one for the two travelers. White had gotten up at the crack of dawn, a rather uncharacteristic thing for her to do, and had packed up and begun marching down the road toward the next city all in less than ten minutes. N had been blurry eyed and confused as she dragged him along, mumbling something about worrying about not making it in time.

N had to admit his blind trust in the girl he had experienced the past night was fading fast. He had hoped to wind up in some field or forest for the event White had said she had in store, not a crowded building full of Pokémon trainers. He could sense more battles; he could just feel it. And he again didn't know if he could sit through another tournament with hundreds and hundreds of Pokémon getting hurt and injured right and left.

The two had arrived in Petalburg City around noon and had stopped at a local bakery for lunch. During their meal N had tried his best to coax any information out of White about the mystery event for the day, but she hadn't budged, just shaking her head with a smile and telling him he'd have to wait and see.

After lunch they made had their way to the building they were in currently, and N was promptly dragged down hall after hall as White asked pedestrian after pedestrian where she could purchase tickets.

"White, this better not be a tournament-"

"It's not, now calm down and help me find the booth," she interrupted, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

N knew that she had had just about enough of his whining for the day, and he mentally gave himself a note that if battling was involved he could whine his way out of it if needed. He couldn't help but smile to himself. She was so determined, and he secretly admired it, and even more secretly hoped that whatever she wanted to show him was worth it, and could possibly convince him that her ways were the right ways.

"There it is," White sighed, slowing down as a kiosk labeled, 'Ticket Booth' came into view at the end of the hallway.

N gave a sigh of relief as her iron grip on his arm loosened and she casually weaved her way throughout the crowd and up to the booth.

N didn't pay an ounce of attention as she asked the man for two tickets. Instead, his focus was on the crowd around them. People of all ages were bustling around, chatting and laughing with one another. Children eating cotton candy shaped like Swablu and holding Drifloon balloons were everywhere as their parents scurried after them and told them not to wander too far. Adults were also in large numbers as they browsed through different tables full of souvenirs with the same gusto the children had.

N had no idea what this place was. He had never experienced anything like it. It reminded him a bit of what a tournament looked like before the crowd took their seats. However, with tournaments you'd see Pokémon everywhere. Whether they were walking with their trainers or performing little side shows for spare change they were always present, but here, N didn't see a single one. It seemed just as festive as a tournament, and yet less serious.

N wasn't quite sure what to compare it to and felt his curiosity mounting by the moment. Just what did White have in store?

"Here."

The voice of the girl pulled him out of his thoughts as he felt a slip of paper stuffed into his hand. N turned around to see White shoving a ticket into his palm while she was carrying her own with a gigantic smile scrawled across her face.

"We got some of the best seats in the house!" she squealed, motioning for N to follow her as she began walking back through the crowded area.

_"The contest will start in five minutes. Five minutes until the contest starts."_ A computerized voice announced over the speaker system.

The reaction was immediate. All of the meandering people kicked it into gear and began scurrying around, all generally headed in the same direction, including White, as N had to struggle to keep up with her. The crowd flowed down the hallway and made a turn past a pair of double doors that opened into a grand stadium.

N gaped at the size of the arena. It rivaled even the biggest he had seen as thousands of people packed into their seats. N followed White up a flight of stairs and across the eighth row to two seats positioned in the middle.

"See, great seats huh?" White said, pulling down the chair and plopping into it.

"No kidding," N replied, gently sitting in the plastic seat next to hers. The view was perfect; he could see the entire area with ease.

"So will you tell me what this is, now?" N asked as the lights dimmed and a spotlight in the center of the stage clicked on, a woman standing in the center.

White grinned, "Just wait and see."

"Hi my name is Vivian and welcome to the Petalburg city Pokémon contest!" The woman in the spotlight threw out her arms in excitement and the crowd burst into cheers.

A Pokémon contest? N had never heard of such a thing. He knew for a fact that there weren't any Pokémon contests in Unova and he wondered for a moment if they were a Hoenn exclusive.

The woman named Vivian, who was apparently the announcer, introduced the judges. Mr. Contesta the head of the Pokémon League, Mr. Sukizo the head of the Pokémon fan club, and the resident Nurse Joy were the three who would be judging the contestants.

"And now, without further ado, our first contestant!" Vivian announced, turning her attention to the side of the stage where another spotlight had clicked on, a small girl running out into the arena.

"Come on out Claydol!" the trainer yelled, throwing the pokeball holding the ground type into the air.

N leaned forward in his seat as the Pokémon appeared. There was only one trainer on the stage. One, not two, therefore it seemed unlikely a battle was about to take place.

"Use Ancient Power!" the girl called.

The large clay Pokémon seemed to glow silver as it unleashed its attack, the light surrounding it forming into a ball in front of itself. Claydol chucked the ball into the air just in time for its trainer to call another move.

"Ice Beam!"

"What?" N whispered to himself. Calling another move before the first had ended? And aiming the attack at the previous one? He was officially confused.

The beam of ice hurtled toward the floating sphere of swirling silver light, colliding and engulfing the Ancient Power attack in a crystal clear coat of ice. It glowed, the silver substance in the middle still shining brilliantly as the orb hovered in the air.

There were stray oohs and aahs from the crowd before the trainer girl called out the next move.

"Okay, now use Cosmic Power!"

"Dol," Claydol grunted, throwing its stubby arms out to the side and closing all of its eyes.

The entire arena dimmed. A dark blue light swept out from the Claydol and across the battle field, snaking up the walls and across the ceiling. It turned the dirt field and the cement the stadium chairs were attached in into a blue coating, any sign of them ever being another color or substance completely disappearing.

"Gah," N heard White mutter as the dark light swept up into the crowd, painting over everything around them; she quickly scrambled and pulled her feet up and onto her chair, her knees to her chest. Little white dots began to appear on the now darkened arena, and N finally realized what it was exactly. A starry sky. The battle field acting as a canvas as the Claydol painted a beautiful sky complete with a few glowing planets across the entire room. N looked down to his feet, now resting on the "sky". It looked as if he were floating in outer space

"Beautiful! Claydol is using Cosmic Power to turn the stadium into a giant solar system!" Vivian called.

The crowd seemed entranced, not a single sound heard as the scene around them continued to unfold. The small white stars on the battlefield began to grow and change in color. Blue, yellow, and pink stars floated up from the floor, drifting lazily upward toward the ceiling, as if magnetically attracted to the still floating and shining sphere the Claydol had created earlier with both Ancient Power and Ice Beam.

The stars eventually made it up to the orb, attaching themselves to it. The ball of light began to grow, slowly engulfed by the multicolored stars, its shining surface no longer visible.

"Alright Claydol, let it go!" the trainer shouted.

"Dol," the Pokémon responded, lowering its arms.

The Ancient Power orb, surrounded by the stars, exploded, shivering and sending specks of color and light flying everywhere, raining down on the stadium and the crowd like a shower of glitter. The audience erupted into fits of applause and cheering and the trainer and its Claydol bowed, the dark blue starry sky beneath their feet slowly fading back to its normal color.

White slowly and hesitantly put her feet back down on the concrete, looking as if she though the ground would suck her feet right in if she touched the concrete.

"A beautiful display of controlled power!" Vivian cheered, throwing an arm toward the ceiling.

The Claydol was recalled to its ball and the small trainer girl jogged back off of the stage. N couldn't help but lean forward.

Nothing had happened. No battle had taken place; no Pokémon had gotten hurt. All they had done was come out, use moves to create something beautiful, and had then left. He'd never seen anything like it before.

Trainer after trainer came out then, in a similar fashion. They would use their Pokémon to create spectacular images or sights, and then bow and leave. N was entranced, and yet confused. Eventually, he leaned over to White to ask her what on earth was going on.

She explained that this was a contest, a competition not about battling strength, but the beauty and finesse of Pokémon and their moves. She said that what they were seeing was called the Appeals Round, and all the trainers were trying to show off their Pokémon's diversity and strength through moves, but without an opponent. Instead, creating visual beauties and fantastic feats.

After nearly an hour Vivian called out that the Appeals Round was over. N saw the three judges huddle together as they began to discuss something amongst themselves. White said that they were talking about which trainers had done the best job, not only in creating something spectacular to see, but also demonstrating control and power through their performance. She said they'd choose the top ten contestants, and they'd move on to the Battle Rounds. N didn't like the sound of that, but White told him to give it a second and he'd see something else that was new.

Sure enough, after a few minutes Vivian told them all to look up to a giant screen to see who their semi-finalists were. Ten faces appeared on the screen, including the girl with the Claydol. The crowd clapped and cheered and Vivan said that without further ado, they'd start the rounds right away.

White shifted in her seat as two trainers, both of whose faces had appeared on the screen, came jogging out and into the arena. N stiffened in place, clenching his jaw in worry. White leaned toward him, whispering for him to calm down and watch, and she'd explain.

The two trainers called out their Pokémon, and a timer was started.

White pointed up to a screen. "Look, see that?" N wearily looked up to the screen as the trainers called out their first moves. His hands tightened on the armrests; there was a battle starting. "Those are the two trainers battling," White said, pointing to the two pictures on the screen. "And see those circles below them? Those are their points."

The two Pokémon's attacks collided and N saw both of the yellow circles tick down, a sliver of the circle now grey.

"See? Their points went down. Points go down if a Pokémon is… well if they are being upstaged basically. For example if a Pokémon fired an attack, and it missed, their points would go down. Or if their opponent attacked and made it look beautiful, they would lose points. The object is to battle while making it look pretty and effortless. So not only power, but also grace. If that makes any sense."

N's eyes wandered back down to the field. Both Pokémon hadn't gotten hurt with the first attack, although he found his breath escalating in worry.

"Okay, now. This is a timed round, N. They're given five minutes to show off their Pokémon as much as they can, and then the round is over. Whoever has more points at the end, wins. It's that simple."

The trainers called out moves again. The Houndoom on the left shot off a Flamethrower attack, and the Donphan on the right used Rollout. The flames collided with the Donphan, the ground type rolling in place as the flames spun off and around it, creating a five pointed flower-like shape as the flames spiraled into the air in different directions. N spotted the Houndoom's trainer's points drop drastically.

"See, N? Because he used his opponents attack against him, making it into something pretty, his opponent lost points."

N swallowed, his eyebrows pinching together. It seemed odd to him, and he wasn't sure why. He waited for it to become a battle, to hear the Pokémon call out in pain, and yet they never did. Instead it was a visual display, both Pokémon waiting for commands and their trainer's creativity to create a spectacle to impress. But what made a small jolt of hope fly through his chest was something else entirely.

"It's timed?" N asked.

White nodded. "Yeah, it's timed. See? See that clock?" She pointed to the screen again. "They have three minutes left, and then it'll be over."

It was timed. It was all a matter of time before the battle would be over. At this rate, N didn't see either Pokémon becoming hurt, let alone coming anywhere near passing out. Instead, the Pokémon looked seemingly happy, as if they were having the time of their life fighting and hearing the crowd clap for them.

N had seen Pokémon seemingly having fun during battles too, fighting for their trainer, but their eyes had never looked like this. Usually they were full of determination and power, and while yes, these Pokémon also looked determined, they also had something more. They had a sparkle in their eyes that told N they were truly having fun. They weren't worried about getting hurt, they just wanted to impress.

"Now," White added hesitantly, "not all contest battles are like this. Sometimes the Pokémon do get hurt and sometimes pass out, but this is a good example of what contest battling is really all about."

N nodded slowly to himself as the Houndoom and Donphan both lunged at each other again, their trainers calling out moves. It was… fascinating.

N watched with the intensity and concentration of a hawk for the rest of the battles. It was in a tournament format, so soon they had the top four –one of the battles ended in a draw-, then the top two in the finale, and finally a winner, which turned out to be the girl who had dazzled everyone with her Claydol.

He was silent, his mind on high-alert and churning over and over what all had happened, what he had witnessed, what White had said, everything.

Once it was all over, White and N both stood from their seats, trodding out and through the hallway before exiting into a beautiful Petalburg day. They walked in silence down the road, heading toward the next route and slowly leaving the city. The pavement turned to gravel and then to dirt, all the while N still pondering to himself.

White stayed completely silent at his side until the dirt underfoot turned to grass, chirpings of wild Pokémon and rustling leaves in the wind being the only sound heard. "So…," she started, shoving her hands into her pockets. "What did you think? I mean… it was still battling, I know, and I don't expect your mind to be changed, but I really wanted to show you that. That not everything is about just fighting with Pokémon. That people compete and make a living doing other things with Pokémon; it's just that some of us do it with battling, and some of us do it with contests, and I'm sure some trainers make money with Pokémon in other ways. The similarity being that we all love our Pokémon more than life itself and would do anything for them. I know I've said it a million times but we all really are partners, us and our Pokémon, just working together and having a good time." She slowly looked up to N who was still staring at the ground, looking a tad confused. "N? Please. I want to know what you thought."

He slowly shifted his gaze over to her and she gave him a light but worried smile. He nodded.

He wasn't sure what he was feeling. He wasn't sure exactly what he'd witnessed, nor did he exactly understand why it had affected his thoughts so. All he knew was that he understood why White had shown him that.

It'd been something totally different. Something unlike anything he'd ever seen before. She'd been right, there was battling, but for some reason he didn't feel himself repulsed by it, worrying for the Pokémon's safety and wanting to reprimand the trainers putting their so-called "partners" though something like that.

White cleared her throat when he didn't speak up. "I know it's not the answer you're looking for, but I thought it was a good place to start. There are all kinds of things and people and Pokémon out there that we haven't seen before. It's going to be a long road, I know, but we have to start somewhere, N. Please, tell me what you're thinking," she nearly whispered, her voice tapering off at the end.

She was right. His mind wasn't changed, barely even swayed. If anything, he'd just been given some food for thought. But she was also right in another respect. He hadn't ever heard of a contest before; surely there were more things like that out there. Not all trainers were just about battling and winning, and even if they were, maybe they were all like White who put her Pokémon's well-being high above winning.

He couldn't tell her that he saw things her way yet, but with this new development, and new things to think about, he wondered if maybe White was onto something and that maybe, just maybe, she could actually do the impossible and change his mind.

He gave her a light smile and nodded again. What he said wasn't going to be an answer, although he figured she'd take it the right way. He was willing to listen, willing to give her convincing a chance. It was definitely the start of something, anyway, if nothing else. That he belived that with her help, he could begin to see things her way. That with her, he could be happier. "Can we go see another contest sometime soon?"

_~Just know you're not alone. I'm gonna make this place your home.~_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I hope you enjoyed~! Just a little off-the-wall thing, although I still think this song fits them perfectly. :D


End file.
